Category Archives: Uncategorized

An article titled “The History of the CubeSat” was published yesterday on SpaceDaily.com. Thought we’d repost as we were fortunate enough to have one of those who proposed the current design standard, Bob Twiggs speak at our inaugural event, the 2011 Fort Wayne Regional Maker Faire. Mr. Twiggs specialty is nanotechnology – the branch of technology that deals with dimensions and tolerances of less than 100 nanometers, especially the manipulation of individual atoms and molecules.

What a great opportunity for area Makers to be inspired to not only think “out-of-the-box” but in this case, to think out of earth’s orbit. What will they think of next?

We’re waiting to hear back from a potential not-for-profit partner to produce the 2017 event. Check back to MakerFaireFortWayne.com as we’ll keep you posted.

It is with heavy hearts we share there will be no 2016 Fort Wayne Regional Maker Faire – Powered by TekVenture.

TekVenture secured a building last year and our primary focus now is to ensure equipment and labs are running efficiently for growing membership and for providing access to tools for community members through workshops and other activities.

We want to thank TekVenture Members, event sponsors, food vendors, musicians and hundreds of volunteers without whom we could not have brought the community this event.

Thank you also to the fabulous committee members who volunteered hundreds of hours of their precious free time to create this fun and unique opportunity to meet Makers from all over the Midwest and beyond.

Finally, we want to thank participating Makers who’s creativity and projects have made the event so successful and something to look forward to over the last five years.

The event producer ExitZero Communications is currently seeking a not-for-profit partner to produce the event in 2017 in order to continue showcasing Makers from the region. If interested, please write Just.Jane@ExitZero.biz.

Friends of making, it’s nearly that time again – the Fort Wayne Regional Maker Faire is just a few days away but there’s still time to Register to Volunteer! An event of this size takes many, many hands to ensure a good experience for all attendees and we need your help.

Still have a few slots open for welders and a variety of shifts for help at the front gate, Maker Shed/Raffle, Bike Valet and more.

Register as a volunteer to get in free AND receive a Tshirt for a few hours of your time.

Maker Jim Galbreath from Logansport, IN will be back for 2015 after a few years hiatus. Jim makes wonderfully unique metal sculptures like a dinosaur mailbox, a spider, or stylized bike rakes. You may have seen his work in the town square in Logansport – its a beauty of a couple dancing.

Jim’s been busy creating piece for Art Prize in Grand Rapids coming this fall. We’re lucky that our guests will first get to see it at Maker Faire Fort Wayne. It weighs 3,000 lbs. but not to worry, it’s much lighter than a real meteor on which he based the metal design.

Clean out your craft drawers and bring your “found objects” to the Maker Faire Swatch-O-Rama for free trade! It could be fabric of any kind, glue, yarn, needles or other tools, buttons, paper, stamps, or any similar whatnots or doodads. Bring yours to the Faire and swap a swatch or something for making your next project, then let us know by showing it off at next year’s Faire!!!

Shane’s background is in industrial robotics and sheet metal fabrication. He sees his projects as art, but also as a launch point for good conversation. New this year, he’s bringing a bicycle with reversed controls. That is, you turn the handlebars right, the bicycle turns left. You can talk with him about how your brain works as you fail to ride this bike, and why you fail.

Also this year, back by popular demand: the Motorized Bicycle, the Chain Bike, and the Modified 1964 Schwinn. Ask him a question about any topic. He knows you will likely both learn something.

New to Maker Faire Fort Wayne, The Goodrich Martians FIRST Robotics Teams, Team 494 The Martians, and Team 70, More Martians will be joining us. They’re bringing parade vehicles they’ve built which include a ʺTime Machineʺ powered by the fuel of the future, ʺBubblesʺ, also incorporates a programmable light disk to help provide for easier time travel (note the Time Machine group was founded in 2098 and has traveled back in time to attend Makers Faire); a ʺCupcake Carʺ is our most delicious vehicle, and a ʺGiant Robot Spiderʺ which is just creepy, scary, and interesting. Please enjoy them all.

This is Detroit’s 6th year for what was an original flagship event for Maker Media in the early days of Maker Faire. There will be over 400 Maker Exhibitors along with the exceptional exhibits within The Henry Ford itself. Thanks to the Detroit planning team for teaching us how to do a Maker Faire.

Suggest you pop on up to Detroit to enjoy the show and to support local Maker Scott Rizzo known for his “Twinkie Mobile”. Scott will represent Fort Wayne’s TekVenture as he goes undercover as “The Huminator” in the national Power Racing Series Circuit. Wish Scott luck that his car survives to race in the Fort.